Fandom Splatoon - Ink or Sink [In-Character]

[.chxrryette.]

Location:Near Crust Bucket
Tags: Noivian

Kaede responded to yet another message when she pulled out her phone.

“Hello, Raymond! My name is Kaede, I’m at the crust bucket right now. What are you wearing? I'm wearing an armor jacket replica."

She sent the message and continued to scan the crowd for curious faces. In the absence of anyone else scouting the crowd, she looked back at the table, exhaled through her nose and rested her chin on her hands.

Her anticipation for the meeting manifested itself in constant fidgeting and message checking. To say the least, she was worried. Regardless of how well the initial meeting went, when they started training, the problems began. She still considered herself rusty, missing hits that should be easy and tripping over herself occasionally. Despite this, she believed she could improve with the right team. That is, if she ever found one.

Kaede glanced at her phone to see if there were any new messages for the 35th time before she scanned the crowd yet again.

 

[Noivian]

Ray stopped as his phone buzzed again, reading over the message. He turned his eyes to the crowd again, picking out an individual wearing the specified armor jacket replica. He gestured vaguely for the others, before stepping up to the table Kaede sat at, smiling warmly. "Kaede, right? We were talking on the phone," Ray said, taking a seat at the table. His smile briefly dipped into a confused frown, but the expression faded as quickly as it has appeared. Funny, he thought for a brief moment, he recognized the other inkling. Must just be coincidence, or so he told himself. "Are you needing of a place to stay? We have a spare bunk in our team apartment- I mean, now that I call it a team apartment, of course we'd have a spare bunk, haha..."

.chxrryette. Bloody_Death FolKinPunk

 

[Bloody_Death]

After ordering both what Raymond and Latte wanted he quickly made his way to the convenience store to pick up a little snack for himself. A bowl of fruit, a granola bar, and a bottle of water. A healthy breakfast in his eyes. He paid and had his things packed up. And if Latte was still following him. He gave her the bag of food from the food truck before walking over to Raymond who was now trying to wave him over. Sat the food down and gave a small smile at the inkling girl.

"Is this our new teammate?" Kai asked as he took his seat. "Um. It is nice to meet you. I am Kai." He introduced himself while unwrapping his granola bar and fruit and starting eating.

---

Interactions: Noivian FolKinPunk .chxrryette.

 

[.chxrryette.]

Location:Near Crust Bucket
Tags: Noivian Bloody_Death

Keeping her chin in her hands, Kaede monitored the screen of her phone in hopes that it would light up. In fact, she was so engrossed in watching it that she failed to notice the two inklings who sat at the table with her. A barely-audible, raspy gasp emanated from her lips as she jumped in surprise, and her golden eyes focused on them.

When they introduced themselves, Kaede instantly felt more relaxed. They seemed rather nice and Kaede was already getting a supportive feel from them. Though she still reminded herself to be cautious, that voice was beginning to become increasingly faint.

"Are you needing of a place to stay? We have a spare bunk in our team apartment- I mean, now that I call it a team apartment, of course we'd have a spare bunk, haha..."

She grinned cheerfully and nodded before signing in response. Then halfway through, she decided against it, picking up her phone and texting Raymond instead. Texting seemed like a viable alternative for those who couldn't sign, since most other teams could not understand her.

“Yeah! I’d love to room with you guys. Right now I’m staying with my aunt, but I can grab my things and move in by tomorrow. I don’t really have a lot with me, so moving in should be pretty smooth.”

After a brief pause, she resumed typing. "Are you guys heading to practice? I assumed you would want to see my skills before allowing me in." Kaede hesitated with the last part, knowing that it was usually at this point that she would be dropped. Although she hoped to avoid the worst, she also believed it was best to get the inevitable over with as soon as possible.

"Sorry for texting my response. It hurts to speak because of an incident. I usually sign instead, but I am fine with talking via text if you guys are also comfortable with it."

 

[Noivian]

Ray frowned when she started to sign, about to tell her that he didn't understand sign language, until she stopped and started typing on her phone. He looked to his own phone, anticipating a message, only to see he'd received a text from Latte as well. Her text stated something about a family emergency, and needing to sit out this year. Ray frowned at the message, but not out of malice or anger. Family emergencies were big deals, and he fully understood Latte's decision. Looking around briefly, he confirmed that she was nowhere to be seen. "Latte won't be able to compete anymore due to personal reasons," he announced to the two that were still with them.

Then Kaede's message came through, and he looked over that as well. "Ah, I see. You can't really talk much... I'll just make us a group text so you don't have to message everyone individually." With that, he added Kai and Kaede's number to a group conversation, and sent a little smile emoji to get it started. "We should probably start practicing, yeah," Raymond stated while unwraping his crusty seanwich and taking a big bite, waiting to talk until he finished chewing. "We're gonna need another new teammate, though getting to know each other's abilites would be a good way to pass the time until then. I think we should start by stating our preferred weapons. I know we talked about this yesterday, but Kaede wasn't there for that. I prefer chargers and shooters, mostly E-liter and Splattershot, but I can flex to sloshers as well."

Bloody_Death .chxrryette.

 

[Bloody_Death]

Kai watched curiously at her signing. He can't say he's ever seen Inklish sign language. He understood small bits of octarian signing but this was completely different to him! When Raymond mentioned Latte he quickly looked around. Not even noticing that she had gone and vanished from his side. "Oh no...I hope everything is okay with her." He mumbled. More worried about her personal issue than finding a new teammate for now. He began opening up his food. Eating some of the fruit with a fork while he tried to peer over at Ray's phone to see what he got sent. He couldn't see so he was just using the context clues from Raymond's words.

When he got the group chat message he smiled. I am not sure what was messaged, but if you cannot speak with your voice it is okay . He sent the message and smiled between all of them. Nodding when Raymond suggested practicing. "Oh weapons. I can use shooters. Along with charger and Splatlings as well. I prefer using the 96 gal the most when it comes to shooters. But I can play other ones as well." Kai explained while sheepishly rubbing his head. Glancing between Kaede and his phone expectantly. Wondering what weapons she enjoyed playing.

---

Interactions: Noivian .chxrryette.

 

[Morzone]

SHAWN - INKLING


Shawn fidgeted in his chair, glancing between the message on his phone and the bustling turf war lobby he was sitting in. On his lap rested a small paper ticket, which he's pulled off an advertisement for a new Ink or Sink team. The ad had already looked several days old, so shawn could not help but worry he'd missed his chance to apply and join. Still, he had never been one to let the odds stand in his way.

He read over his message again.
"hello,

My name is Shawn, I saw your ad in the turf war lobby seeking players for your Ink or Sink team. I'm a gunner main and have a lot of experience in high rank turf games. I would like to offer myself and my skills and apply to join your team."

-Shawn

Yes, that'd work fine. Or atleast he hoped it would, as he clicked the 'send' button to forward the message to this Raymond person. Now he just had to wait and keep his fingers crossed a spot was still open.


Mentions: Noivian

 

[.chxrryette.]

Location:Near Crust Bucket
Tags: Noivian Bloody_Death

A toothy grin appeared on her face once Ray mentioned a group chat. This was definitely a step in the right direction. It was already evident to Kaede that she would fit well into this team.

Even though her smile faltered when she heard that their other team member would have to withdraw, she was confident that others would be able to step up. Ray and Kai had been welcoming and open-minded to her, and she could only hope their fourth teammate would be the same.

While reading Ray's and Kai's answers, she glanced down at her phone and texted.

“That’s alright! I’m just glad you guys are so supportive! I like shooters, as well! Though, jet squelchers, splattershot pros, and dualies are my favorite. I can also use blasters, specifically the luna blaster. I envy both of your skills in chargers. I suck at using them. ”

As if in the middle of a dilemma, she bit her bottom lip in deep thought, then decided against texting further and set her phone down on the table. It would be better if she didn't mention that she went on hiatus from turf wars and ranked battles and only recently came back. Besides, she believed she had improved over the past few months and could hold her own. It was Kaede's hope that she would be able to impress them, if not just convince them to keep her. In the meantime, she waited for the others to ask more questions or raise other topics for discussion.

 

[Noivian]

Ray took another bite of his food, listening while Kai talked about his weapons of choice, and checked his phone when Kaede started typing, only to realize that he had another message from somebody! Eyes widening, he set the food aside again, tapping open the message. At the mention of someone wanting to join, he swallowed hard and partially choked on his food, coughing and thumping his chest with a grimace. "Guys," he rasped, taking a moment to cough again, "we've got a fourth. Their name is Shawn and they're a gunner main."

'Yeah, we're still looking for a new teammate. If you're down to join, we're going to be heading to the practice range soon so we can get familiar with each others styles and skills.'

Tapping back over, he read through Kaede's message, nodding. "That's a good range of, well, range. We've got a bit of weapon diversity, it seems." Picking up the rest of the Crusty Seanwich, Ray looked at it suspiciously, as if thinking it would try to choke him again. He took a smaller bite this time. "So anyways, I'm thinking we head over to the practice range soon and get warmed up, as well as work out some basic team composition stuff. Oh, and Kaede, you should probably teach us some signs so we know if you're signing for backup or something. When we're all at the practice range, of course, so Shawn doesn't miss out."

.chxrryette. Bloody_Death Morzone

 

[Bloody_Death]

Kai smiled down at his phone as he watched Kaede's message appear. Nodding to himself as he thought about how they could structure their team. Between the chargers and the long range shooters. Though he didn't get to speak when Raymond suddenly started choking. "A-Are you okay...!?" Kai asked in shock patting Ray's back a bit when he started coughing. But he soon lit up at the sound of a new member. "Already? How lucky are we?" He said with a cheery smile. Soon returning to finish up what was left of his fruit.

"Umm...I think a Luna or dapples could be nice. From what I am hearing...we do not have a for sure front line. Well, it depends on what types of shooters our last member likes..." Kai spoke more aloud to himself. Just trying to think about what would be best for them to use that covers all the bases. Well, some teams do well without front lines. They just gotta see what everyone is like!

"I am finish so I am ready." Kai informed, stacking up his trash before nodding in agreement with Ray. "Yeah. It will be hard to have no communication in battle. Signs could work. Do you think they allow some sort of whistles or audio devices on the field?" Probably not. He just knew it would be very easy to miss one of Kaede's signs in the heat of the moment.

---

Interactions: Noivian .chxrryette.
Mentions: Morzone

 

[Morzone]

SHAWN - INKLING

Da-da-dum Shawn's phone rung, signally a response message had been received. The inkling fumbled to open it, nearly dropping the phone in his nerves. The response had been so quick, was that a good sign or a bad one? Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Shawn opened up the response.

'Yeah, we're still looking for a new teammate. If you're down to join, we're going to be heading to the practice range soon so we can get familiar with each others styles and skills.'

"SHELL YEAH!" he let out a shout, drawing curious looks from everyone in the lobby. "Sorry, sorry!" He apologized to the crowd as he grabbed his weapon and made for the door. As he turned his feet in the direction of the practice range, Shawn made an effort to calm himself. He still needed to perform and show them he actually had the skills to be part of the team. Still, he couldn't help but smile at how quickly he'd been invited to join them at their practice. A sign of good luck, for sure.

Several minutes of walking later, Shawn arrived at the entrance to the practice range. There were a few stray inklings and octolongs about doing their own practice, which was normal from Shawn's experience. Feeling too nervous to wait by the entrance, Shawn grabbed his ink canister and N-zap and headed to one of the unoccupied shooting dummies to do some warm up shooting.

 

[.chxrryette.]

Location:Near Crust Bucket
Tags: Noivian Bloody_Death
In response to Raymond's coughing, Kaede's face was filled with concern, her mouth opening slightly as if she gasped. However, upon hearing that they already had a fourth member, her previous expression shifted to one of glee. She had no doubt they would find another member quickly, but not at this pace.

"Already? How lucky are we?"

In agreement with Kai, Kaede nodded. The mere speed at which the fourth member responded still astonished her. At least they have another shooter on the team. That should allow them to make more offensive plays. Personally, Kaede recalled how she played more aggressively when she competed with her twin brother, Hiro, but decided to dial back her playstyle to compensate for her rustiness. As Kai pointed out, the absence of a frontline would present some problems, but Kaede would volunteer for the role if necessary.

“Oh, and Kaede, you should probably teach us some signs so we know if you're signing for backup or something.”

Great, she completely forgot that she couldn't text everything to Raymond, Kai, and now Shawn. The fact that Hiro always communicated in her place meant she never had to figure out how to convey her message. Without Hiro, her teammates on the battlefield would have difficulty receiving signals from her. Kaede had considered it at various points leading up to this moment, but previous teams had been reluctant to accommodate her incapacity to communicate. All-in-all, orders were easy to receive, but giving them was another matter altogether.

“No, probably not. : (” Her message was in response to Kai's inquiry regarding leniency with audio devices. “I can teach you guys a few signs that I would use with my brother, though! On another note, I’m also ready to head over to the practice range whenever."

 

[Noivian]

Ray took a moment to look at his phone for Kaede's message, nodding and finishing off the last bite of his meal in the process. Shoving his phone in his pocket, he stood and dusted off his hands on a napkin, balling it up with the wrapper. "Sounds like we're all ready to go, then. I bet Shawn's already there and waiting for us, so let's not keep him waiting." Waiting for the others to get themselves ready, he tossed his trash in a nearby trashcan and started to lead the group towards the practice range. Meanwhile, he sent another text to Shawn: should be there soon. look for two inklings and an octoling moving as a group. im wearing a striped shirt and goggles.

Upon entering the practice range, Ray looked around, searching for someone who'd be looking for them. Stepping over to the rental counter, he passed over an ID in return for a rental ink tank and slung it onto his back. "Keep your eyes peeled, gang. I forgot to ask for a description, so we're looking for someone looking for us." Moving to the locker room, he pulled his E-liter 4k Scope from his locker, hefting the big gun onto his shoulder casually, continuing to scan the scattered inklings and octolings currently in the practice range.

.chxrryette. Bloody_Death Morzone

 

[Bloody_Death]

Kai gave a small nod. A bit disappointed that his idea of a sound device wasn't aloud. But then again he wasn't surprised. "That is too bad. But what can we do. Will try my best to know." Kai hummed. Sign language was always fairly interesting. So maybe Kaede could teach them some in their free time! But for now they had to get to the practice range to meet their, hopefully, last teammate. He hoped no one else would leave or have any more emergencies.

After tossing his trash out he followed behind the two inklings. When they arrived, he went straight to the locker room. Already having an ink tank he could use. Once in the locker room he grabbed his .96 gal and ink tank before sitting everything else in the locker and closing it. Once he was suited up he stood outside the locker room and looked around for someone who looked liked they were looking for someone. "His name was Shawn, right?" He asked the other two, just making sure he remembered correctly. Idly shooting some ink on the ground as he waited. He wondered what Shawn was like. He hoped the two wouldn't be scared off by their cramped apartment. Speaking of which, he'll have to buy some groceries before heading back.

---

Interactions: Noivian .chxrryette.
Mentions: Morzone

 

[Morzone]

SHAWN - INKLING

"His name was Shawn, right?" The sound of his name wandering through Shawn's mind suddenly broke the inkling's concentration. Lowering his N-zap, he looked around for whoever had spoken, wondering if it was him they were referring to or someone else. He spotted a group of 3, two inklings and one octoling, standing together near the locker room. Was that them? The team? The chances were good, but then again there were probably plenty of teams getting ready for the competition. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't asked for a description or given one of himself, beyond his name.

"Probably not a good sign... I better work on my communication for the competition." he mused to himself, pulling out his phone to send a message. "Ah- they already sent me one." Geez first he didn't communicate properly and now he'd been so tunnel visioned on his practice he'd missed their messages too. "Gotta shape up Shawn."

Still, after reading the message his doubt had been erased. Leaning his weapon across his shoulder, Shawn walked over to the group to introduce himself.

"Hey, you all are looking for a Shawn right? Well you found him, Shawn is me and I am Shawn. Are you Ray and the team?"

 

[.chxrryette.]

Location:Near Crust Bucket -> Practice Range
Tags: Noivian Bloody_Death Morzone
"That is too bad. But what can we do. Will try my best to know."

Nodding, Kaede smiled. Teaching SSL to a willing person wouldn't be too difficult. She only had to show a few signs, no need to go into extensive detail.

Once they decided to head over to the practice range, she stood up from her chair and began to make her way toward their destination. It was difficult for her not to crack a wide smile and have a skip in her step as she followed behind.

At the practice range, Kaede scanned the lockers, searching for those stickers she plastered on the front. Upon finding it, she walked over and unlocked it, spending quite a long time doing so because she had forgotten her passcode for the hundredth time. Inside her locker, she stored a few snacks, her luna blaster, tetra dualies, and some other essentials. After retrieving her luna blaster, she closed her locker door and went to meet with the other members of her team.

"Keep your eyes peeled, gang. I forgot to ask for a description, so we're looking for someone looking for us."

"His name was Shawn, right?"

With a wordless affirmation, or a quiet but strained "hm," Kaede looked carefully around the practice range. She remembered practicing until late into the night with Hiro, then grabbing whatever meals they could from the nearby convenience store that was open 24 hours a day. After a moment of recollection, she glanced over at her teammates. Could she make similar memories with these guys as well?

"Hey, you all are looking for a Shawn right? Well you found him, Shawn is me and I am Shawn. Are you Ray and the team?"

A voice from behind Kaede startled her, and she whipped around to see another inkling. Oh, this is Shawn! At least they didn’t have to look for too long. As he wasn't in the group chat, Kaede couldn't offer a formal introduction, so she settled for a simple wave and a smile.

 

[Noivian]

Ray's eyes caught Shawn approaching, and upon introducing himself, Ray broke into a wide grin. "Yup, you found us! I'm Raymond, this is Kai and Kaede. Hope we weren't too much of a trouble to find," he said, gesturing to his teammates as he introduced them. It occurred to him then that Kaede wouldn't be able to talk without Shawn in the group chat, so he set down his weapon briefly to pull out his phone and add Shawn to said group chat. "Kaede talks via text, so I've added you to a group chat so you can see her messages," he explained, before realizing that just giving out that information might be rude. "Oh, uh, sorry Kaede, I didn't think about it, probably shouldn't just be telling people that...? I just thought I'd be proactive is all..." Ray ducked his head sheepishly. While looking at the ground, he realized he'd left his weapon there, and quickly stooped to pick it up again.

.chxrryette. Bloody_Death Morzone

 

[Bloody_Death]

Kai

Location: Training Grounds
Currently Feeling: Excited!

Interactions: Shawn ( Morzone ) | Kaede ( .chxrryette. ) | Raymond ( Noivian )

Mentions: None

Kai was quick to look up and around when he heard someone else speaking. Watching as another inkling came over to them. Introducing themselves as Shawn. He gave a small smile as well and offered a wave when Raymond introduced them all. He looked between the other three and gave a content hum. They may have had a few hiccups with teammates before, but now all four of them were here and could try training together! He was really looking forward to it. And it seemed like Shawn is using an n-zap? That would be a nice match to all the weapons that they all currently favored. He peeked between Raymond and Kaede, when it seemed like Ray did something he shouldn't...he personally didn't see it wrong to tell their new teammate that...but that was just him. He hoped Kaede wasn't upset.

"Um...! Well, it is nice to meet you, Shawn. Thank you for clarifying that you are Shawn, Shawn." He lightly joked, laughing a bit sheepishly at it. Hoping to bring the mood back up again. "I'm excited to play with you all." He said a bit shyly, curling the tip of his tentacle around his finger. Just happy to be on a real team for the tournament!

 

[Morzone]

SHAWN - INKLING

Shawn surveyed his new teammates. Raymond, Kai, and Kaede. Kaede apparently couldn't speak, or at least preferred not to? It's the same either way I guess, better do what I can.

"Hey, it's all cool. It'll be like talking to a long distance friend. Just, yknow, close distance." Shawn pulled out his phone, seeing that what Raymond had said was true and he was now connected to their group chat. Looking back around at the other three again he asked, "Have any of you been in a tournament like this before? I've done a lot of solo playing, but this is my first proper team. Oh, uh, thanks for letting me join by the way, means a lot to me Raymond." Pausing, Shawn picked up and showed off his Nzap "I mainly use my nzap, but I'm fairly solid using a slosher and light gatlings if I need to shake things up."

Hopefully that would be enough of a topic switch to get over any awkward feelings. Shawn personally thought Raymond had been right to be proactive like that, especially if he was their leader, but even someone as thickheaded as himself could see how that could be off-putting when it was someone you only just met. At least, Shawn assumed they had all just met. Maybe they all knew each other already and he was the only newbie to the team.

Noivian Bloody_Death .chxrryette.

 

[.chxrryette.]

Location: Practice Range
Tags: Noivian Bloody_Death Morzone
In Ray's introduction, Kaede nodded at the mention of her name. When Shawn was added to the group, she pulled out her phone to type up an introduction.

However, Ray seemed concerned after having informed Shawn about her voicelessness. Furrowing her eyebrows in confusion, she erased what she had planned to type in the group chat and instead typed:

“That’s totally fine! I don’t mind at all. : )”

Shawn probably would have discovered something within a few seconds if Ray hadn’t told him about it beforehand, as it wasn’t likely to remain a secret. In any case, Kaede couldn’t tell Shawn herself due to obvious reasons, so she was thankful someone was able to do so for her. At least Shawn would know what he was getting into before fully joining.

"Hey, it's all cool. It'll be like talking to a long distance friend. Just, yknow, close distance."

“Yeah! Thanks for being super open to it. Anyways, it’s great to meet you, Shawn! I’ll be teaching the rest of the team some signs to improve communication during matches. If you have any questions, feel free to let me know!” In case she needed to respond to anything else, Kaede kept her phone out and ready after typing her original message.

"I mainly use my nzap, but I'm fairly solid using a slosher and light gatlings if I need to shake things up."

Having thought about it, Shawn's n-zap would provide the team with some tremendous ink coverage, especially since inking turf would not be her strong suit if she stuck with her luna blaster.

“Awesome! I’m typically main shooters and blasters, more specifically the tetra dualies and luna blaster. Also, how do we want to go about practicing? I’m a tad bit new to the whole team dynamic as well since I’m used to duos.” Kaede typed into the group chat.

 

[Noivian]

Ray checked his phone when Kaede messaged, and breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good to know." He hefted his weapon, now heavier since one of his hands was preoccupied with his phone. "You're more than welcome on the team! Frankly, we've been having a little trouble with sudden drop outs, so if anything, I should be thanking you for being willing to join so last-minute!" Ray looked around the practice range, and upon finding an open area with a couple targets and a raised ledge, gestured over to that area. "We could warm up over there, then perhaps hop into the lobby to try out our teamwork..." While gesturing, he noticed Kaede had messaged again, and checked his phone, starting to walk over to the open area. "Ah, right, you didn't hear our weapon preferences, Shawn. I prefer chargers, but can flex to shooters and sloshers as needed. I haven't worked in a coordinated team setting yet, so this'll be a first for me. But I'm sure we'll find our style soon enough!"

Slotting his phone into his pocket, Ray aimed down his scope for a moment and fired, leaving a long ink trail over to the area he'd gestured to, and up onto the ledge. Dropping into squid form, he swam along the ink trail and popped up onto the ledge, shaking extra ink from his tentacles and aiming with his scope again. A short moment of concentration, tracking a moving target, an exhale, and then a single shot. The target popped satisfyingly, and Ray lowered his weapon, grinning at the rest of the team. It wasn't all that impressive of a shot, the squid target was traveling along a predefined path at a steady rate, but he still seemed to beam proudly at his accomplishment.

.chxrryette. Morzone Bloody_Death

 

[Bloody_Death]

Kai

Location: Shooting Range
Currently Feeling: Excited

Interactions: Ray ( Noivian ) | Kaede ( .chxrryette. ) | Shawn ( Morzone )

Mentions: None

Kai was starting down at his phone. Reading each message Kaede sent when she sent the last one he smiled up at them. "Umm...I haven't really played in a big tournament like this. But I've played a lot of rank with my brother! I am excited to be in a full team though." Kai spoke fondly. He nodded at everyone's preferences for weapons. Nodding when Shawn said he played N-Zap. That would be really good!

"Oh cool! Um...I tend to play shooters. My favorite being the 96 gal. But I can play 56 too. Even Jet if we need more range! I can also use chargers and splatlings too! I just generally like playing support or midline." Kai explained. A bit more in detail since everyone was present. He followed behind Ray and stopped in front of the group of dummies. Humming quietly to himself as he started warming up. Which included: stretching, testing his weapon out, and actually firing at the dummies. He was excited for their first practice in the lobby!